Travelogue

My 'T' in life

Another exciting adventure in August.

I went to Norway with a few friends for a hiking weekend.

Kjeragbolten 1084m and Preikestolen (Pulpit rock) 604m are the two famous and popular hikes in Ryfylke, Norway. Majority of the landscape is shaped by the distinctive the razor sharp summits and the Fjord, created by the movement of glacier thousands years ago!). The two hikes Kjeragbolten (5 hours return) and Pulpit (3 hours return) fit perfectly for a weekend hiking trip~

The weather on both days were awful with grey cloudy sky and occasional heavy rain, and the visibility was very low. In some occasions, we could only see 20m away! All these time, we follow the official trail with a series of little red 'T' signs. They can be found every 20-30m away linking the entire route.

At one point, due to the heavy fog. We lost track of the 'T' sign. Once you misjudge the direction, this may result in completely losing your way. That would be scary!

This really make me reconsidering life. Some days when you feel you are losing your direction. Perhaps you should stay exactly where you are, look around, I mean, have a good look around before you keep going again! Try to see through your obstacles, perhaps it is just a seasonal fog blocking your way, you never know!

No one is the same on when and how you can find your right path but I wish you all find your little red 'T' like I did and enjoy the moment of your journey with your partners, friends and yourself!

June is the one of the best months to visit gardens in the UK when summer flowering plants having their celebrations in waves and waves of blossom.

I visited Bodnant Garden last weekend. Bodnant Garden is a National Trust property near Tal-y-Cafn, in the county borough of Conwy, Wales. It was donated in 1949 by Henry McLaren, 2nd Baron Aberconway and is still managed today by his descendants. One of the famous features is the Laburnum Arch, a curved walk about 55m long covered with laburnum which produces a magnificent cascade of long yellow flowers in late May/ early June. (only 3 weeks in a year!)

However, when I got there, the very famous magnificent yellow flower archway was in its end phase of blossom. L! As you can see most of the flowers are dry and a bit brown. If I could get there one week before, the scene would be completely different!

Well, never mind. Perhaps I should appreciate the imperfection, the unexpected and the defectiveness.

Perhaps everyone is hoping for a perfect journey. Yet, we don’t realise how beautiful an imperfect journey can be.

Admiring the birth and the death, from sprouting, to establishing, to in full blossom, to wilting, life presents itself in different forms.

Leaning to appreciate the beauty of all stages in life, everywhere is the right time right place.

Everyone has a story. Perhaps they think their stories are worth nothing to be mentioned but they could mean a life changing inspiration to the others. Who knows!

I met Mr. Starfish del Mar while I was in snorkelling in Chichime Island, San Blas Islands, Panama. He really lives in a lovely place, which most people would describe as a paradise – warm weather, sunny day, crystal blue sea and fine sandy beach.

San Blas Islands of Panama are an archipelago containing approximately 378 islands and cays, some of the islands are so small that it can just fit one palm tree! According to Wikipedia, only 49 are inhabited! I was lucky to visit one of the remote one with inhabitants. Cayos Chichime island lies on the eastside within the San Blas Islands, there were two families live on each end. The island is fairly small, 20mins is all you need to walk around the entire island! Halfway through my walk, I saw an orange object in the shadow water waving at me. That was my first encounter with Mr. Starfish del Mar~!

I met Miss Glacier when I was hiking from a village called Mestia to Chalaadi Glacier. Mestia is in Svaneti region, this is a mountainous region in northern Georgia, in the heart of the Great Caucasus Range. Within this area, there are numerous of stone defensive towers, called ‘Svan towers’ as well as a number of important medieval churches and forts. The tall towers with the backdrop of the Caucasus mountains, the view was magnificent! After a good 4-5 hours walk, walking through the quiet village, passing the dense forest, crossing the rough river and climbing up the loose rocks, I saw Miss Glacier waving at me happily.

Everyone has a different path. Your path and theirs cross the moment you connect with the others, one glimpse, one smile, one nod.
Meeting friends are such an amazing experience for me because you will never know where you end up.
A simple question of ‘How do you get here?’ will lead you to unlock a treasure box, packed with exciting stories which can paint your conversation with kaleidoscopic colours.
Perhaps some you may not be able to look into their eyes or some even are so cold to touch.
Yet you can feel the warmth from inside.

From the day I knew I am a potato chip, I knew I am different.
I have such a great curiosity, always want to explore. I want to reach, to see and to feel the world!
I really want to be something… something BIG.
I want to know what is out there!

Of course, other chips are all echoing with the same boring comments,
‘No, you can’t do that. You are a standard potato chip and you will always be a potato chip.’
But did I care?!

‘Until you try, you do not know what you can't do.’

The refreshing taste of the water droplets on the first blade of the grass.
The amazing view standing on the top of the summit on a summery clear sky day.
The playful sound of scrunching dry leaves by your bare feet in a maple forest.
The unforgettable feeling of making footprint on fresh snow.

We all hunger for moments which make our eyes wide open, our heart pumping fast and our soul ignites.